[Aptorian]

Donald Trump says debt is great!

[Macros]

lets make debt great again!

[TheRetiredBridgeburner]

Survived my first week in my new job. It is massive and my brain has pretty much melted. However, the people are lovely and the culture seems right up my street. Everyone seems very on board and aware with the fact it's not a job you learn quickly, so not feeling like there's undue pressure. Woop

[amphibian]

In the space of a week, I've had an interview (last Tuesday) and a second interview (today). I think I had a very good reception from the most important person (to my possible hiring) there in both rounds. In the first round, I was getting personal/work stories from both people who were interviewing me because I'd managed to connect to them past the rote stuff with some stories of my own and good questions.

This second one, I think I might have been reviewed by the highest up to make sure I was competent, to run me by them, and to see whether I could work with others that weren't attorneys. One of the people from my first interview was there and ended up talking a good amount back and forth with me once I started asking them questions.


I think the biggest hit of a question I asked was today: "If I'm hired, what do you want me to be doing in 2 years? What should I be building towards?" That really seemed to open up the dynamic a bit to let them talk about "initially, you'd be doing this, in two years time, you'd have XYZ added on, be able to step into this and that role" and so on.

I know I probably have stiff competition in whoever else is being interviewed, but I'm hoping pretty hard because the fit/work type is 100% good for me.

[Maark Abbott]

Apparently the fact I throw myself headlong into the fire on matters I'm not handling to correct problems is not going unnoticed.

Whether that translates into opportunity or a pay rise (lul) we'll see. The new employers seem markedly less dickish than the last.

[Tiste Simeon]

It's my birthday and my wife got me some Waterstones gift cards, saying that she knows how much I love books and browsing bookstores so she wants me to go and have a good long time there and pick my own books. Honestly it's a beautiful present!

No idea what I'll get but am open to suggestions!

[Macros]

Terry Goodkinds entire back catalogue

[Tiste Simeon]

Macros, on 04 February 2022 - 02:02 PM, said:

Terry Goodkinds entire back catalogue

Pfft like I don't already have all the original hardcovers of that already.

[amphibian]

Tiste Simeon, on 04 February 2022 - 11:59 AM, said:

It's my birthday and my wife got me some Waterstones gift cards, saying that she knows how much I love books and browsing bookstores so she wants me to go and have a good long time there and pick my own books. Honestly it's a beautiful present!

No idea what I'll get but am open to suggestions!

I think you'd really like the Crimson Empire series by Alex Marshall.

It's a story of a band of oldsters who already rose up, overthrew the evil empire, screwed it all up, and events were rigged to bring them all back together with a bunch of young ones to save the world + deal with the consequences of their crappy actions before. Super great and funny character work, firmly medieval tech, very cool world.

[worry]

Happy birthday! Get yerself somethin pretty.

[Tsundoku]

amphibian, on 04 February 2022 - 04:36 PM, said:

Tiste Simeon, on 04 February 2022 - 11:59 AM, said:

It's my birthday and my wife got me some Waterstones gift cards, saying that she knows how much I love books and browsing bookstores so she wants me to go and have a good long time there and pick my own books. Honestly it's a beautiful present!

No idea what I'll get but am open to suggestions!

I think you'd really like the Crimson Empire series by Alex Marshall.

It's a story of a band of oldsters who already rose up, overthrew the evil empire, screwed it all up, and events were rigged to bring them all back together with a bunch of young ones to save the world + deal with the consequences of their crappy actions before. Super great and funny character work, firmly medieval tech, very cool world.

Agreed, it has a few grimdark tendencies but a lot of very dry gallows humour. The author makes some very nasty characters quite ... likeable really.

[Tiste Simeon]

Is that the one a few of you were talking about a while back, the "competency porn" books?

[amphibian]

Tiste Simeon, on 04 February 2022 - 11:28 PM, said:

Is that the one a few of you were talking about a while back, the "competency porn" books?

No - those are the KJ Parker books where someone is a jerk blacksmith or an engineer and mechanizes their way through a fiendishly complicated plan to conquer a kingdom or something despite people not liking them very much.

[Tsundoku]

amphibian, on 05 February 2022 - 12:22 AM, said:

Tiste Simeon, on 04 February 2022 - 11:28 PM, said:

Is that the one a few of you were talking about a while back, the "competency porn" books?

No - those are the KJ Parker books where someone is a jerk blacksmith or an engineer and mechanizes their way through a fiendishly complicated plan to conquer a kingdom or something despite people not liking them very much.

Wasn't someone describing a new fantasy series where some heir takes over while in a weak position as Emperor or something as competency porn as well? Sorry but the name escapes me.

But yes, all the protagonists in the KJ Parker books I have read (Fencer trilogy, 16 ways/How to/A Practical Guide) are really good at a core "something" that drives the plot. Colonel Orhan from "Sixteen ways to defend a walled city" is still my favourite though (see quote below). He deserved far better than the ending he got as written.

This post has been edited by Tsundoku: 05 February 2022 - 01:54 AM

[Tiste Simeon]

Tsundoku, on 05 February 2022 - 01:50 AM, said:

amphibian, on 05 February 2022 - 12:22 AM, said:

Tiste Simeon, on 04 February 2022 - 11:28 PM, said:

Is that the one a few of you were talking about a while back, the "competency porn" books?

No - those are the KJ Parker books where someone is a jerk blacksmith or an engineer and mechanizes their way through a fiendishly complicated plan to conquer a kingdom or something despite people not liking them very much.

Wasn't someone describing a new fantasy series where some heir takes over while in a weak position as Emperor or something as competency porn as well? Sorry but the name escapes me.

But yes, all the protagonists in the KJ Parker books I have read (Fencer trilogy, 16 ways/How to/A Practical Guide) are really good at a core "something" that drives the plot. Colonel Orhan from "Sixteen ways to defend a walled city" is still my favourite though (see quote below). He deserved far better than the ending he got as written.

Yes it wasn't the KJ Parker books in thinking of, though I loved 16 Ways to Defend a Walled City.

The one I'm thinking of is called Hands of the Emperor or possibly something similar.

[Malankazooie]

Aw yeah! My ancestral fatherland, Sweden, is leading the gold medal count at the Olympics. Haven't watched any of it personally, but I'm guessing it involves events that require mastery of gravity as you fall down a mountain. I don't expect it to be the case by the end of the Olympics, but nice to see Sweden at the top of the medals list as we approach the close of week 1.

[Gwynn ap Nudd]

I submitted a resume and application last summer or early fall for a position on one of my professional association's technical advisory committees, in one of my fits of "hearing is awesome, I can do stuff now". Not a paying gig, but would look good on a resume, help with networking and cover off my professional development hours. Thought I might have a chance but ended up half assing things as I was snowed under at work. Application was one of those where it stated they would only contact people accepted and I wrote it off after not hearing anything a month or two later. I had completely forgotten about it until today when I received an invitation to attend the next meeting. Sounds like it's a on trial basis, not permanent committee spot, but better that than nothing.

[Mezla PigDog]

Home alone! Two nights of glorious solitude. I went to the movies yesterday afternoon, came home to an empty house. Now I have a whole day of aloneness stretching ahead. I'm going to stay in my pyjamas, watch The Witcher season 2, eat donuts, drink tea I reckons.

[Slow Ben]

That sounds amazing.



Super Bowl Sunday baby!!

Gonna eat my weight in tacos and root for the Bengals. Because fuck Kroenke, that’s why.

[Tsundoku]

Enjoy.

I just read an article stating the average Superb Owl game goes for 3hr 12min! For a 4 x 15min quarter game! But that 1hr contains only 18min of actual play!
And the average play only lasts 4sec! Wow, and we thought cricket was designed for ads. Well, different strokes etc.

https://www.mirror.c...-lasts-13626956

Some more crazy stats from the last decade.

https://www.theverge...-the-super-bowl

3hr 44min average.

"Most live football coverage is replays, people standing around, and men talking. The actual action of the football game — when the ball is in play — is about 12 minutes long. If you wanted to watch the entire “Super Bowl” for the love of the sport, you could do so in less time than it takes to heat a frozen lasagna in the oven."

This post has been edited by Tsundoku: 13 February 2022 - 11:59 PM